Megane does 7:54 at Ring: Time to raid to parts bin

[lne937s]

Over in Europe they have been figuring out how to get some impressive performance out of front wheel drive hatches. Now the new Megane RS 275 Trophy-R has posted a new Nurburgring FWD lap record. What is really impressive is when you look at where it places the car on the list: only supercars with around twice as much power as the Megane's 275 hp are faster.

http://blog.renault.com/en/2014/06/16/7 ... -trophy-r/

Really wishing Nissan would bring over a C-Segment hot hatch. While the current Megane is heading to the end of its lifecycle, the next generation is scheduled to be out soon on the Nissan/Renault CMF platform shared with the new EU market Nissan Pulsar. Hoping in the name of "parts efficiencies" and "global vehicles" that we end up with a Nissan Hatch over here soon that heavily shares Renault Sport DNA.




For Reference:
7:54 Mercedes CLK DTM AMG Sport Auto (03/2005)
7:54 Nissan GT-R September 2008 Porsche conducted test,[41] stock vehicle with stock tires
7:54 Porsche 911 Turbo 997 Horst von Saurma Sport Auto (05/2007)[65]
7:54.36 Renault Mégane RS 275 Trophy-R Laurent Hurgon 16 June 2014 Test realised by Renault Sport. New record for a FWD car[66]
7:55 Caterham R500 Superlight Robert Nearn 'EVO' magazine (07/2000)
7:55 Ferrari F430 F1 Horst von Saurma Sport Auto (01/2006)
7:56 Chevrolet Corvette C5 Z06 Dave Hill crossedflags.com[67]
7:56 Porsche 911 Turbo (996) Horst von Saurma Sport Auto [68] Flying start ("fliegende Runde.")
7:56 Porsche Panamera Turbo Walter Röhrl Motor Trend (07/2009)[69]
7:56 Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale f1 Horst von Saurma Sport Auto (02/2004), Sport tires[citation needed]
7:56.73 Honda NSX-R (NA2) Motoharu Kurosawa -
7:58.4 Seat Leon Mk3 Cupra Jordi Gene March 2014 Top Gear conducted test[70]
7:59 Chevrolet Corvette C6 Z51 Dave Hill General Motors conducted test[citation needed]
7:59 Cadillac CTS-V (2009) John Heinricy 9 May 2008 General Motors conducted test,[71] video confirmed[72]
7:59 Porsche 911 Carrera S Walter Röhrl 'Wheels' magazine (06/2004), PASM setting "Performance"[citation needed]
7:59 Nissan Skyline GT-R R33 V-Spec Dirk Schoysman 1996 Best Motoring - Time Attack / Autocar magazine 97, stock[citation needed][73]
7:59 Dodge Viper SRT-10 November 2005 Motor Trend[citation needed]
8:01 Nissan Skyline GT-R R33 Motoharu Kurosawa Best Motoring - Video Special DVD Series, Prototype (weight/horsepower different from production car)[citation needed]
8:02 Mercedes CLK 63 AMG - Black Series Autobild (07/2007)
8:02 Aston Martin DBS Horst von Saurma Sport Auto [74]
8:03 Aston Martin V8 Vantage (2005) Horst von Saurma Sport Auto (10/2005)
8:03 Porsche 911 GT3 Horst von Saurma Sport Auto (08/1999)
8:03.86 Honda NSX-R (NA1) Motoharu Kurosawa Best Motoring Video Special Vol. 25 "NA1 NSX-R" (1995), video confirmed
8:04 Audi R8 V8 Sport Auto (07/2007)[75]
8:04 Alfa Romeo 4C topspeed.com (09/2013)[76]
8:04 Porsche Cayman S Walter Röhrl Sport Auto, 19 inch wheels, ceramic brakes.[citation needed]
8:05 BMW M3 E92 Horst von Saurma Sport Auto (12/2007)[77]
8:06 Subaru WRX STi Spec-C (2004) Motoharu Kurosawa Best Motoring Video 'NISMO Beast Unleashed'[78]
8:07 BMW Z8 E52 Autobild (06/2001

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%c3%bcrburgring_lap_times

[OriginalWheelman]

Thing to remember about Nurburgring times.

Track lengths and timing

There are varying lap lengths. Therefore, not all of the lap times are comparable.
Full lap

A full lap of the Nordschleife, bypassing the modern GP track, is 20.832 km (12.944 mi) long. Most laps are completed 200 metres (656 ft) shorter for safety reasons. Full uninterrupted flying laps can only be done in closed sessions and race events like Castrol-Haugg-Cup.
Sport Auto lap

During the industry testing sessions in which sport auto records its "Supertest", the track can not be traveled at full speed past "Tribüne 13" (T13, grandstand 13) in order to allow safe access from the old exit/entrance there. Thus, sport auto Supertests cover only about 20.6 km (12.8 mi), which in average yields a 7 s shorter lap time compared to a full lap.

The Pulsar shows promise, but if it follow suit with Nissan's current trend it will either A. Be more expensive than it's competitors with marginal differences, or B. be more concerned with 'zero gravity seats' and CVTs.

The current gen Nissans (Z and GT-R excluded) are god awful garbage. When I had a 2013 Altima loaner car I hated it. The nose stuck out forever, it was hard to tell exactly where it was because of the drop off, and it had a TERRIBLE turning circle. The only car I could compare it to is my 92 Q45, which in all honesty handled better, and got better highway mpg. It felt huge and awkward and underpowered. The Q was huge, but at least it was agile. At least the Q gets a v8 to move it around, not a 2.5 that barely moves a Sentra properly bolted to a wind up rubber band box. The current Altima feels like a Chevy. Put a GM badge on it and I'd have been fooled. So yeah, I have no hope for any new Nissan.

[flohtingPoint]

Nurburgring laptimes are only "gee wiz" neat things to look at, and should never been taken at face value. Below is a picture of the tires that GM used on their C6 Z06 for it's "Nurburgring Lap"



They're fun things to look at to kill time, but picture Nurburgring times like you do (or at least should do) Top Gear. Entertainment, but not reality.

[Bubba1]

Agree with these guys. Nurburgring lap times by professional drivers are meaningless, but manufacturers still obsessively use 'em for marketing gimmicks. I'd love it if Nissan offered the US market a real hot hatch, but given Nissan's current direction, any US version of the Megane, might as well be named "Methane", as it would likely only be offered only with a CVT and therefore stink like rotten eggs to a real enthusiast.

[OriginalWheelman]